Some 88 000 dollar millionaires in Africa are likely to relocate to new countries because of declining confidence in the future on the continent, a new report estimates.
According to BusinessLIVE, the Africa Wealth Report published by Henley & Partners in partnership with New World Wealth also notes that ‘a large number of billionaires have left Africa over the past 20 years or so’, adding that while there are 52 Africa-born billionaires globally, only 23 still live in Africa.
The report says: ‘This is a significant concern as many billionaires are entrepreneurs and company founders who therefore have the ability to create significant employment in their host countries. Billionaires rarely move for tax reasons. They usually relocate to expand their businesses or due to safety concerns.’
Amanda Smit, managing partner at Henley & Partners South Africa, said high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) were deserting countries they had lost confidence in.
Smit says: ‘The increasing outflow of affluent individuals often points to a drop in confidence in a country, since HNWIs and ultra-HNWIs have the means to leave and are thus the first to exit and vote with their feet when circumstances deteriorate.’
BusinessLIVE reports that between 2012 and 2022, 18 500 HNWIs left Africa for the UK, the US, the United Arab Emirates, Australia, Canada, France, Israel, Monaco, New Zealand, Portugal and Switzerland. About 1 200 HNWIs have moved between African countries over the same period, with most relocating to Mauritius and South Africa.
The total private wealth held on the continent is $2.4-trillion.
Africa is home to 23 dollar billionaires, 328 centi-millionaires ($100m-plus net worth) and 138 000 dollar millionaires. Five of the dollar billionaires live in South Africa, eight in Egypt, four in Nigeria, four in Morocco, one in Algeria and one in Tanzania. Two of the five South African dollar billionaires live in Johannesburg, two in the Cape winelands and one in Cape Town.